Pipe wrench



2 ShQetS -Sheet 1 c. E. WRIGHT PIPE WRENCH I March 5, 1940.

Filed July 12, 1938 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS.

March 5', 1940. Q E; mg -r 2,192,702

PIPE WRENCH Filed July 12, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

. ATTORNEYS,

Patented Mar. 5, 1940 UNITED STATES PIPE WRENCH Clyde E. Wright, Elyria, Ohio, assignor toThe Ridge Tool Company, North Ridgeville, Ohio,

a corporation of Ohio Application July 12, 1938, Serial No. 218,740

2 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in wrenches and more particularly to improvements in pipe wrenches having so-called floating or movable hook jaws.

Although wrenches having the movable jaw loosely carried by the housing and having springs cooperating with said jaws to position the same, are well known, the prior wrenches have many disadvantages in construction which it is the purpose of the present invention to overcome. For instance, in the prior devices the spring and its cooperating elements often broke due to faulty design. Furthermore, the actual design did not provide the full floating features which are desirable. Still other disadvantages reside in the fact that if the hook jaw was removed the springs and associated parts were easily lost and if replaced were difiicult to assemble. Sometimes the sliding action of the hook jaw itself caused displacement of the parts. Furthermore, the design of the prior wrenches was such that if the wrench was used as a hammer it often caused breakage of the springs. Although wrenches are not supposed to be used as hammers, the fact remains that they are so used, and hence precaution must be taken in the design and construction so that the wrenches will not be damaged by such use.

Still other advantages of the invention and the invention itself will become more apparent from the following description of an embodiment thereof, which description is illustrated by the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings;

Fig. l is a side elevational view of a wrench of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a similar view with portions of the wrench broken away and shown in section to illustrate the interior construction;

Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views taken on the lines 3--3 and 4--4 respectively of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of an improved spring element;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a modified form of spring element;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary section of the housing similar to Fig. 2, with the spring and hook jaw removed;

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of another modified form of the spring element; and

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary broken section of modified type of heel jaw and housing construction.

Throughout the drawings, like parts have been designated by like reference characters.

Generally speaking, the wrench of this invention is an improvement over those of Patents 1,939,798 of December 19, 1933; 1,850,187 of March 22, l932; and particularly 1,727,623 of September 10, 1929, to William O. Thewes, and comprises'a handle I, the one end of which has 7 a laterally extending housing 2 having an opening therethrough' substantially parallel to the handle through which the shank 4 of a hook jaw 3 extends. The hook jaw has transversely extending teeth 5 adapted to cooperate with the 10 teeth 6 of a heel jaw 1 carried on the end of the handle. An adjusting nut 8 is provided for the hook jaw, being disposed on the threaded shank 4. The nut is held against longitudinal movement by engaging the bottom of the housing 2 15 when rotated in one direction, and by the laterally extending ears ll) disposed on the handle and extending on opposite sides of the shank spaced below the housing 2, when rotated in the other direction.

The underside of the heel jaw is provided with a downwardly protruding tongue H which extends longitudinally thereof, as best shown in Fig. 2, and by which the heel is removably secured to the base of the housing. The tongue is held in a groove H2 in the end of the handle by a pin I3 which extends through the tongue and the walls defining the groove. The, bottom sides or shoulders of the heel jaw adjacent the tongue have a firm bearing engagement with the end of the housing adjacent to the groove.

The opening through the housing is particularly designed to hold a centering spring which embraces the shank of the hook jaw and controls the position of the hook jaw relative to the heel jaw prior to engagement with a pipe.

The opening through the housing comprises a main channel defined by the front and back walls It and I6 and the side walls l! and It. The front and back walls are curved transversely and converge slightly toward each other longitudinal- 1y, being closest together at the lower end, thus providing a channel that is wider at the upper end than the lower end, as best shown in Fig. '7. The side walls are substantially parallel to each other throughout the channel. The wall It being smooth throughout its length. The walls l5, l6 and H are, however, formed to provide recesses for the reception and guiding of a spring, which spring in turn controls the floating position of the jaw. To this end, a channel 2i! is provided in the wall l5 extending from the upper end of the housing to a point spaced from the lower end of the housing and a similar channel 2| is provided in the opposite wall l8. while the wall I1 is relieved at 22 extending transversely there across in the mid-section.

The spring which serves to center the hook jaw in the channel, so that the end 3 of the jaw is capable of either forward or backward movement, is best shown in Fig. 5, and comprises a pair of oppositely disposed longitudinally extending guiding walls 25 and 28 which are of arcuate cross-section adaptedv to embrace the threaded shank of the hook jaw. The two walls are held in spaced relation to each other by a web 21 connected to the edges of the walls at their mid-section.

A pair of tongues are provided at 28 and 29 by severing the material of the walls 25 and 26, respectively, in parallel lines, which tongues are bent outward away from the walls. The tongue 28 is provided with a hook 4i} formed in prolongation of the tongue and extending at. an angle from the end thereof. The spring is preferably made of thin tempered sheet steel, but obviously may be made of any resilient spring metal. The tongues could also be made separate from the walls 25 and 25 and secured thereto by spotwelding or riveting.

As previously stated, the purpose of the spring is to center the hook jaw in the channel through the housing. The shank of the jaw is capable of but very limited movement in the lower end of the channel, while the upper end may move forward and backward because of the divergence of the walls l5 and It. The spring element is disposed in the channel of the housing with the tongue 28 extending into the channel 20 and the hook 4:! extending under the back edge of the heel jaw, the groove for the tongue of the heel jaw being sufiiciently large to permit insertion of the hook under saidheel jaw. The opposite tongue 29 is disposed in the channel 2|, while the web 2? lies in the relieved portion 22 in the side wall of the housing.

The shank t of the hook extends through the housing, the spring element walls 25 and 26 having a sliding grip with the shank. The end 30 of the tongue 28 being engaged under the heel jaws, prevents accidental displacement of the same in either direction from the housing. The adjusting nut 3 positioned between the ears IE1 and the lower ends of the housing, holds the hook jaw in predetermined adjusted position.

As best shown in Fig. 2, the tongues 28 and 29 hold the hook jaw in a central position between the walls f5 and I6, and yet permit the end 3 of the hook jaw to be moved either forward or backward over the heel jaw, the resiliency of the springs always returning the hook jaw to the normal position when disengaged from a pipe. The hook jaw may thus be accurately positioned to engage any particular pipe and quickly releases the same when the wrench is rotated to obtain a fresh grip. In the position shown, when a pipe is between the jaws 5 and 6 if the handle is rotated clockwise, the upper and lower jaws close on the pipe in a manner well known to those versed in the art, the walls 25 and 25 of the spring element tilting in the housing together with the shank l. When the pressure is released and the handle rotated counter-clockwise, the jaws are first released and the hook jaw is moved by the spring to its normal floating position and the hook 3 may then be moved rearward beyond the normal position for obtaining a fresh bite on the pipe.

Fig. 6 shows a modified form of spring which is similar to the spring of Fig. 3 except that the angle portion 40 is omitted. In this instance, the spring is held in the housing by the engagement of the end of the tongue 23 under the end of the heel jaw. The spring of Fig. 5 is, however, to be preferred.

By making the channels 26 and 2| long enough so that they extend beyond the point of junction of the tongues 28 and 29 with the walls 25 and 26 of the spring element, the spring tongues are always free to move and are never hampered by being wedged between the shank of the hook jaw and the walls of the housing. This is particularly to be desired when the wrench is used as workment oftendo to strike blows with the housing 2 against some article. If the housing was not relieved opposite to the point of junction of the spring tongues and wall, it would be equivalent to hitting the spring, at the place Where it diverges, on an anvil with a hammer, such blows would cause the tongues to be sprung back into parallelism with the walls 25 and 26 and they would then cease to function in the manner described.

In Fig. 8 I have illustrated a modified form of spring which is substantially the same as that of Fig. 5 except that the web 2'! extends contiguous to the walls 25 and 26 for their entire length. With this type of spring it is unnecessary to form the wall I"! in the housing with the transverse relieved portion 22. The channel in this instance would be slightly off center so that the hook jaw would be centered over the heel jaw.

The handle and housing may be cast or forged. If cast, all of the grooves mentioned in the housing can be cast at one time. If forged, the lower shoulder of the groove ii and indicated by the straight line 30, is forged and a fin of material is left extending above the housing; this fin is bent over into the interior of the housing in a separate operation to provide a shoulder 3| which defines the upper boundary of the relieved por-" tion H.

In Fig. 9 I have illustrated a fragment of a handle showing a modification wherein the heel jaw 'l' is forged integral with the handle. In

this event a recess all is provided to receive the end tli of the spring.

Having thus described the invention in certain specific forms, it will become apparent to those skilled in the art that certain modifications and departures may be made from those herein shown l and described but that such changes may be within the purview of the invention, and that it is not the intention that the invention be limited to the specific embodiments illustrated other than by the claims which are appended hereto andwl that the claims should be construed with a range of equivalents to which they are entitled in view of the prior art.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a handle, a housing extending laterally from the handle, a heel jaw carried by the handle adjacent the housing, said housing having a jaw and springreceivi'ng channel therethrough, a hook jaw comprising a shank extending through said housing and a having a jaw disposed over the heel jaw, a spring engaged in the spring-receiving channel of the housing and positioning the hook jaw in said channel, and comprising a body in guidingengagement with the hook jaw shank, and a pair of oppositely diverging tongues engageable with the housing to hold the hook jaw shank centered in said channel, a hook formed on one of said tongues and engaged over the end of the housing under the heel jaw to prevent displacement of the spring upon movement of the hook jaw shank, means for preventing the tongue from being bent by being engaged between the hook jaw and the housing comprising a clearance space formed in said spring-receiving channel at the junction of the tongue with the guide.

2. In a wrench oi the class described, a handle, a housing carried by said handle formed to provide a channel tiierethrough said channel comprising parallel side walls and diverging front and rear walls, said front and rear walls diverging toward the top of the housing and being provided with longitudinally extending recesses, a hook jaw for said wrench and including a shank extending through said channel, guidemeans for holding said shank normally out of engagement with the diverging walls comprising a body shaped to conform to and slidably engaging said shank and floatingly disposed in said channel, spring means for holding said body, said channel comprising spring members for said body extending divergingly therefrom and adapted to be seated in said recesses, one of said recesses being formed with a counter recess and said one of said spring members having an angularly extending portion engaged in said counter recess, said first mentioned recesses in saidchannel being formed to provide a clearance space for said spring mem- CLYDE E. WRIGHT. 

